Sidamo Natural Guji Flavor & Aroma: Sidamo Coffee Varieties and Prices

Pour-over Sidamo Brewing Method

Use 15g of coffee grounds, a medium-fine grind (Fuji ghost tooth grinder setting 3.5), a V60 dripper, and water at 91-93°C. First pour 30g of water, bloom for 27 seconds. Continue pouring to 105g and pause, wait until the water level in the coffee bed drops to half, then slowly continue pouring until reaching 225g. Discard the tail end. Water-to-coffee ratio is 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

Ethiopian Sidamo Shakisso Natural

• Country: Ethiopia
• Region: Shakisso, Guji Zone
• Altitude: 1800-2000 meters
• Processing: Natural

Shakisso coffee has remarkable uniqueness, and the coffee produced here consistently draws market attention. The legendary Ninety Plus bean (nekisse) was originally named "Nectar from Shakisso," deriving both its origin and its name from the Shakisso region.

• Variety: Local Heirloom varieties
• Producer: Local smallholder farmers

The Sidamo Coffee Region

Sidamo coffee flavors are incredibly diverse. Different soil compositions, regional microclimates, and countless native coffee varieties create distinct differences and characteristics in coffee produced by each town and area. The Sidamo region is located in southern Ethiopia, where agriculture dominates the local economy, and its coffee growing areas are situated around the Great Rift Valley.

Shakisso: A Unique Growing Region

Shakisso, in Guji, Oromia region in southern Ethiopia, borders Sidamo and Gedeo. The area contains numerous mining pits, originally used for gold extraction, which have left holes throughout the coffee growing areas and make walking between plantations dangerous. Shakisso stands out as a distinctive region within Guji/Sidamo, a remote area far from most coffee-producing regions even within Sidamo. The area's other famous product is gold.

Factors including miners, land disputes, and ethnic tensions caused instability in the region in 2006. As a result, the biggest challenge facing the area today is the manpower needed to maintain the growing areas and harvest the coffee. Local smallholder farmers began cultivating organic coffee in 2001, working closely with medium-sized coffee producers who are experienced in growing forest coffee at high altitudes.

Flavor Profile

Lemon, mango, blueberry, and wine-like aromas.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

FrontStreet Yirgacheffe Natural Red Cherry is a vivid introduction to Ethiopian natural processing. It uses only fully ripe, unblemished cherries, which are sorted and then dried on raised beds and turned every two to three hours early on to avoid uneven heat and over-fermentation. After three to five weeks the fruit is hulled and the beans stored. Because the cherry dries around the bean, the cup keeps the typical Yirgacheffe profile while adding tropical fruit: citrus acidity, berry juice, honey sweetness, and a creamy smoothness.

FrontStreet Dinding Cooperative is the washed, high-clarity option. Dinding sits at the southeastern edge of Yirgacheffe, and the cooperative grew out of the Worka cooperative under the YCFCU before emerging as its own single origin. It follows the traditional washed method, and because the pulp is removed before drying, its inherent aromatics come through more clearly: citrus and lemon with elegant white florals, bright and refined overall.

FrontStreet Kaffa Forest represents wild Ethiopian coffee. Rather than the garden model, Kaffa is known for wild coffee, with trees growing between 1,400 and 2,100 meters in shaded conditions, where the original ecosystem, microclimate, red soil, and plentiful rainfall provide an excellent environment. Roasted medium-light, it has pronounced white florals on grinding, bright lemon acidity, sweet orange and bergamot on entry, a faint melon and nut sweetness in the finish, and a green-tea-like body.